Gould Family (1729-1891) and Gould Homestead (1908-1977) Papers
Ms 6
Table of Contents
Summary Information
- Repository
- Fairfield Museum and History Center
- Creator
- Gould family
- Creator
- Gould Foundation (Fairfield, Conn.) .
- Creator
- Gould, John, 1801-1871
- Title
- Gould Family (1729-1891) and Gould Homestead (1908-1977) Papers
- ID
- Ms 6
- Date
- 1729-1891, 1908-1977
- Extent
- 1.75 Linear feet (4 boxes; 4 oversize items; 1,000 items approx)
- Language
- English
Preferred Citation note
Item, Collection Title, Collection number (Box #, Folder #). Fairfield Museum and History Center, Fairfield, Connecticut.
Biographical/Historical note
Nathan Gold of St. Edmondsbury, England arrived in the new village of Fairfield in the year 1648, establishing within a short time his preeminence in the community as, among other things, constable, assistant judge of Connecticut's General Assembly, and the commander of Fairfield's militia. His descendents carried on this tradition of civic responsibility: his son, Nathan, Jr. (d. 1723), served as Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut for many years; his great-grandson, Colonel Abraham Gold (1732-1777) was killed fighting the British in Ridgefield, CT; and his last male descendant, Captain John Gould (1801-1871), served as notary public, representative (and later senator) in Connecticut's General Assembly, railroad commissioner, moderator of town meetings and United States Marshall by appointment of President Abraham Lincoln.
Captain John Gould was also a businessman, the owner of a fleet of schooners that over a period of approximately forty years (1826-1865) plied trade between New York City and Richmond, VA and later Liverpool, England. A measure of his success, both as a businessman and as a public official, was the stately mansion known as Gould Homestead which he had built in 1840. This Greek revival home stood at 172 Post Road in Fairfield until 1956, when it was torn down to be replaced by a Food Fair supermarket.
The Gould Homestead was the site of the Gould Homestead Summer Home for Women during the years 1910-1955. The Gould Homestead Summer Home for Women was established under the will of Captain Gould's daughter, Elizabeth Gould (1825-1908) to provide a free vacation home to working women of Fairfield County.
After the demolition of the original Homestead in 1956, the vacation home was run at 85 Post Rd., Fairfield. By 1967 however, the Homestead no longer attracted working women as a vacation home. The trustees of the Gould estate then established a scholarship fund for female residents of Fairfield County, initially under the auspices of the Gould Foundation (1968-1977) and later (1977 to present) under the management of Bridgeport University.
References:
Banks, Elizabeth V. H. This is Fairfield: 1639-1940. New Haven: The Walker-Rackliff Company, 1960.
Cutter, Richard, et al., ed. Genealogical and Family History of the State of Connecticut., Vol. II, pp.757-758. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1911.
Hurd, D. Hamilton. History of Fairfield County, Connecticut, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers. pp. 317-320. Philadelphia: L. W. Lewis and Company, 1881.
Scope and Contents note
This collection is composed of 4 boxes of documents and account books and 4 oversize items--an account book and three photographs. The bulk of the collection consists of the papers, both personal and business, of Captain John Gould. The personal papers of the Captain range from numerous bills for tailor-made clothes to poetry on small bits of paper. Equally diverse are his business papers, which include not only bills but also insurance and sales contracts for his schooners and a few letters regarding cargoes of the same.
Also in this collection are: (1) some older Gould family papers, chiefly legal documents (which are quite fragile); (2) legal documents, correspondence, reports and newspaper clippings of the Gould Homestead Summer Home for Women (later the Gould Foundation); and (3) photographs of the Gould family members and their residence, the Homestead.
Within the folders, the arrangement is alphabetical according to subject matters where feasible, and within those categories, chronological. Otherwise, chronological order prevails.
Administrative Information
Publication Information
Fairfield Museum and History Center
370 Beach Rd.Fairfield, CT
203-259-1598
Conditions Governing Access note
There are no restrictions on access to this collection.
Conditions Governing Use note
Use of the material requires compliance with the Fairfield Museum and History Center regulations.
Custodial History note
Items in this collection were donated by Eleanor S. Cathcart, Elbert S. Overbaugh and other unknown donors. Accession numbers L1983.July.1 and L1986.June.6 also make up the collection.
Processing Information note
This collection was processed by Angela Suter in March 1981.
Controlled Access Headings
Personal Name(s)
- Gould, Elizabeth B. (Elizabeth Burr), 1825-1908
Subject(s)
- Account books--Connecticut--Fairfield.
- Correspondence.
- Endowments
- Houses--Connecticut--Fairfield
- Photographs.
- Receipts(financial records)
- Ships
Collection Inventory
Box I |
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Folder A Bills, contracts, legal documents, miscellaneous 1729-1823 19 items |
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Contracts for sale of land 5 items |
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Writs 2 items |
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Inventory and distribution of estate of Abraham Gold 1778-1779 |
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Account between Hezekiah Gold and Elizabeth Gold 1777-1783 |
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Bills 2 items |
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Miscellaneous notes 2 items |
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Folder B Captain John Gould bills, personal 20 items |
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Coal |
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Cobbler |
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Doctor 1826-1844 |
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Groceries 1827-1836 |
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Hotel accommodations 1840-1848 |
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Folder C Captain John Gould bills, personal 29 items |
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Housewares 1834-1835 |
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Liquor 1835-1836 |
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Postage 1834, 1841 |
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State and town taxes |
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Folder D Captain John Gould bills, personal 25 items |
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Tailoring and fabrics 1834-1845 |
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Folder E Captain John Gould bills, personal 24 items |
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Tuition 1832-1844 |
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Folder F Captain John Gould bills, personal 19 items |
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Wages 1834-1844 |
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Wagon repair 1835-1838 |
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Miscellaneous |
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Folder G Captain John Gould bills, business 9 items |
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Allen and Paxson Co. 1832-1844 |
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Gilbert Allen and Co. 1830-1832 |
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Folder H Captain John Gould bills, business 12 items |
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John Pitts, Captain of the Schooner Hornet 1833-1835 |
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Folder I Captain John Gould bills, business 14 items |
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John Pitts, Captain of the Schooner Hornet 1835-1837 |
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Folder J Captain John Gould bills, business 25 items |
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Doane Sturges and Company 1833-1837 |
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Folder K Captain John Gould bills, business 5 items |
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Schermerhorn Willis and Co. 1833-1834 |
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Folder L Captain John Gould bills for schooners 36 items |
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Courier n.d. |
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Greenway 1844-1845 |
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Hornet 1833-1837 |
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Folder M Captain John Gould bills for Schooner Hornet 22 items |
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Provisions 1833-1837 |
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Sails and sail making 1833-1836 |
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Commissions, procuring, advertising 1834-1837 |
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Harbor Master's fees 1833, 1837 |
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Folder N Captain John Gould bills and letter for schooners 27 items |
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Hornet miscellaneous bills 1833-1837 |
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Hornet letter, signature illegible 1832 |
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Lynchburg bills 1843-1847 |
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Folder O Captain John Gould letters, legal documents and bills for schooners 25 items |
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Lynchburg letters 1838-1839 3 items |
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Richmond bills 1839-1844 |
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Virgina bill, letter and statement of foundering 1848, 1854, n.d. |
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Contract to build ships 1836, 1845 |
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receipt for payment on ships being built 1844-1845 |
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Folder P Captain John Gould schooners' sales and insurance contracts 18 items |
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Contracts for sale of ships 1831, 1843, 1850 |
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Statement of ownership of ships 1831, 1844 |
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Insurance contracts 1826, 1856-1865 |
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Folder Q Captain John Gould bills of lading, account with Walter Thorp and miscellaneous business letters 19 items |
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Bills of lading 1832-1845 |
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Letter from Schermerhorn Willis and Co. 1834 |
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Letter from R. Hoyt 1839 |
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Letter from James Stubs 1849 |
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Letter from James Piker 1852 |
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Account with Walter Thorp 1836-1837 |
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Bills and account re: Gould's role as administrator of Walter Thorp's estate 1836-1844 |
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Folder R Captain John Gould miscellaneous business papers and bills, cancelled checks 63 items |
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Papers re: Gould's role as school commissioner 1835 |
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Papers re: Gould's role as railroad commissioner 1859 |
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Papers re: Gould's role as United States Marshall 186? |
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Papers re: Gould's role as delegate to state conventions 1848, 1855 |
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Bills paid by Gould for Samuel A. Nichols 1832, 1838 |
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Cancelled checks 1859-1870 |
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Folder S Captain John Gould miscellaneous 31 items |
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Poems |
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Receipts 1835, 1836 |
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Promissory notes 1858, 1866 |
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Notes (undated arithmetic figuring) |
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Folder T Captain John Gould undated papers found in account books II, III, IV, and V 15 items |
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Folder U Bills, contracts, miscellaneous 1872-1891 18 items |
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Bills 1872-1886 |
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Contract for sale of land 1885 |
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Letters 1872, 1875, 1888 |
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Miscellaneous 1876-1891 |
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Letters to Jeremiah Gould re: cow's death on railroad tracks 1851-1853 |
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Calling cards-E. Gould and Mrs. J. Gould |
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Folder V Gould Homestead: Papers relating to Management of Elizabeth R. Gould's trust 18 items |
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Legal documents re: assets of trust 1914, 1955 |
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Minutes of trustees' meetings 1951-1956 |
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Treasurer's report 1955 |
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Correspondence among trustees (see box for full list) 1949-1956 |
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Folder W Gould Homestead: Documents relating to sites and contents 16 items |
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Legal documents (contracts for sale of property, etc.) 1951-1955 |
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Correspondence (see box for full list) 1941-1956 |
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Inventory 1932 |
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Folder X Gould Homestead: Its management as vacation home 67 items |
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Leaflet 1910 |
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Notes for speech 1923 |
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Receipts of expenses 1835 |
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Autobiography of Katherine M. Spaulding 1935 |
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Letter, list and pamphlet for donation 1941 |
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Thank-you notes from guests 1951, 1966 |
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Monthly reports of expenses 1955, 1965-1967 |
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"The American's Creed" DAR publication |
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"The Gould Homestead: A Memorial" pamphlet |
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Gould Homestead leaflet |
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Note |
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Folder Y Gould Homestead: Newspaper clippings 25 items |
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Folder Z Gould Foundation 5 items |
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Newspaper clippings 1968-1977 |
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University of Bridgeport report to donors 1968-1969 |
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Box II |
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Folder A Captain John Gould account books 2 items |
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Mechanics Bank 1838-1854 |
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Schooner Hornet 1828-1837 |
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Folder B Captain John Gould account books 2 items |
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Miscellaneous figures 1822-1854 |
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Schooners Lynchburg and Richmond 1834-1846 |
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Folder C Books 2 items |
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Julia Gould's friendship book 1854-1858 |
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Gould Homestead reunions 1941, 1947, 1959 |
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Folder D Gould Homestead Guestbook 1910-1914 |
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Folder E Gould Homestead Guestbook 1914-1919 |
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Folder F Gould Homestead Guestbook 1919-1923 |
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Folder G Gould Homestead Guestbook 1941-1966 |
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Box III |
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Gould Homestead record books |
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Minutes of trustees' meetings and annual reports 1909-1914 |
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Minutes of trustees' meetings and annual reports 1913-1966 |
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Folder A Loose papers from record books 14 items |
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Folder B Gould family photographs 13 items |
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Folder C Gould Homestead photographs and negatives, exterior 68 items |
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Folder D Gould Homestead photographs, interior 12 items |
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Box IV |
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Folder A Gould Homestead Photographs, miscellaneous people and pets 45 items |
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Folder B Miscellaneous acquisitions 5 items |
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Folder C Gould Homestead financial reports 1946-1951 48 items |
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Folder D Gould Homestead financial reports 1952-1955 36 items |
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Folder E Gould Homestead financial reports 1956-1958 36 items |
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Folder F Gould Homestead financial reports 1959-1963 48 |
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Folder G Gould Homestead application |
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Oversize Item A Captain John Gould account book V 1840-1843 |
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Three photographs of Gould Homestead |
Map-case drawer |
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